Suchergebnisse

This open-access book analyses how stakeholder relationships impact the sustainability of health aid. It does this by providing an overarching analytical framework, which allows for a systematic analysis of sustainability, relationships, and a possible causal link between these phenomena. The book goes beyond universal paradigms and detailed single-case studies by offering a thorough analysis of development projects to identify the factors that are also applicable to similar initiatives in comparable contexts. Empirically, it focuses on two health initiatives, both implemented in the Kyrgyz Republic, a country pursuing a sector-wide approach to health aid. Unique primary material provides insights into a geographic region that is mostly neglected, and will be of interest to students and researchers of social policy, development studies, international health and those focusing on the post-Soviet region and Central Asia.

Growing criticism of developed countries for vaccine nationalism challenges the validity of their support to developing partners. This contribution analyzes the changes the European Commission introduced to improve its crisis responsiveness and coordinate the assistance provided by the European Union member states and institutions. Established during the COVID-19 pandemic, "Team Europe" initiative has far-reaching geopolitical objectives to be achieved by increasing the competitiveness and influence of European aid abroad. In the South Caucasus, Team Europe has provided significant social and economic support to three countries, though not enough to expand the role of the EU in the region vis-à-vis Russia, Turkey, and China. Due to its clear shortcomings, including a poor balance between the EU and partner countries' interests and coordination problems, Team Europe has thus far contributed in only a limited fashion to strengthening the position of the EU and its agenda in the South Caucasus.

The availability of qualified healthcare workers is essential to patients' access to healthcare. An increased demand for medical workers has contributed to their shortage and uneven distribution across and within the states. Looking for a better life and career prospects, healthcare professionals move from rural to urban areas and from developing to developed countries. This article focuses on the issue of availability of medical workers in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The analysis illustrates the unequal access to healthcare caused by the concentration of medical personnel in urban areas. Therefore, the shortage of healthcare workers is related to the uneven geographic and professional distribution, rather than to the lack of personnel. Reviewing the secondary literature on retention of medical personnel and the scarce empirical data on the three countries, this article provides policy recommendations and argues for an inclusive approach that accounts for both patients' and medical workers' interests.

Seit ihrer Unabhängigkeit Anfang der 1990er Jahre rückten die zentralasiatischen Staaten ins Blickfeld der internationalen Gebergemeinschaft, insgesamt wurden seither ca. 2 Mrd. US-Dollar in die Region investiert. Damit ist der Beitrag internationaler Geldgeber in den Bereichen Wirtschaft, Soziales, menschliche Dimension und Sicherheit beträchtlich, seine Verteilung ist jedoch nicht gleichmäßig. Im Folgenden wird am Beispiel des Gesundheitswesens in Zentralasien der Frage nachgegangen, wie sich diese Unterschiede erklären lassen. Dafür werden die Höhe der Entwicklungsgelder, die Hauptgeldgeber und ihre Schwerpunkte sowie die Rahmenbedingungen in den Empfängerländern analysiert. Es zeigt sich, dass neben der Höhe des Bruttoinlandsprodukts pro Kopf die Bewertung im Demokratie-Index von Bedeutung ist, wie auch gemeinsame wirtschaftliche und politische Interessen von Gebern und Empfängern. Die "Offenheit" bzw. "Abschottung" der Empfängerländer gegenüber ausländischer Hilfer stellt ebenfalls eine wichtige Determinante für die Unterschiede in der Verteilung der Gelder dar.

AbstractIn many low‐ and lower‐middle‐income countries, development aid accounts for a large share of social expenditures. However, its fragmentation is among the major challenges to the efficiency and sustainability of policy measures. In reaction to this challenge, the Sector‐Wide Approach (SWAp) to development aid proposes pooling resources in order to improve cooperation and increase ownership by the recipient state. The SWAp to health care in Kyrgyzstan, which started in 2005, is treated as one of the major success stories in the expert community and the academic literature. To allow for systematic analysis of the many‐fold principles incorporated into the SWAp blueprint, we re‐conceptualise it as an ideal‐type causal mechanism leading from improved cooperation to efficient aid implementation. Based on a case study of the second phase (2012–2018) of the SWAp to health care in Kyrgyzstan we highlight critical junctures in the implementation of a donor‐supported social policy.

Current research on transnational knowledge transfer has a strong bias toward (often conditionality-based) advice originating in the core OECD world and focuses nearly exclusively on the link from a source to a target of knowledge transfer. This contribution provides a broader and more nuanced picture by looking at the reverse logic of non-OECD countries proactively searching abroad for policy advice and assessing this advice based on their own requirements. Based on the role of conditionality and on the attitude of the recipient country toward cooperation with foreign sources of advice, five demand-side strategies in transnational policy-related knowledge transfer are distinguished, each of which is analyzed utilizing the example of health reform. The results highlight systematic differences in the attitude toward and employment of foreign advice.